


Votive

by The_Readers_Muse



Category: Hot Fuzz (2007)
Genre: (essentially), Alpha/Alpha, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Angst, Boys In Love, Drama & Romance, Happy Ending, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Multi, Mutual Pining, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Sex Pollen, could be considered dub-con due to trope, really this is just a one shot that got out of hand
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-10
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:02:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22203046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Readers_Muse/pseuds/The_Readers_Muse
Summary: "Whatcha reckon? Alpha then?" Doris asked, barely a day into Sargent Angel's arrival in Sandford. Popping her gum with relish as the Andes looked up from their bowls of Chunky Monkey with twin glares of disdain - then grudging interest.
Relationships: Andy Cartwright & Andy Wainright, Andy Cartwright/Andy Wainwright, Nicholas Angel & Danny Butterman, Nicholas Angel/Danny Butterman
Comments: 23
Kudos: 111





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own "Hot Fuzz" or any its characters, wishful thinking aside.
> 
> Authors Note #1: Because I need to bring the filth into every fandom.
> 
> Warnings: sex pollen, alpha/beta/omega dynamics, adult language, canon appropriate violence, drama, angst, romance, pining, con-consensual drug use, alpha/omega, alpha/alpha, dub-con due to trope.

"Whatcha reckon? Alpha then?" Doris asked, barely a day into Sargent Angel's arrival in Sandford. Popping her gum with relish as the Andes looked up from their bowls of Chunky Monkey with twin glares of disdain - then grudging interest.

"That kind of speculation is inappropriate and against department guidelines," Angel responded sternly. Appearing from nowhere as Tony upset his bowl in surprise. "The identity of secondary genders is protected under section 5-468.9 of the Alpha, Beta & Omega accords and is not considered considered applicable for anything other than booking rut and heat relief."

"Alpha, then," the Andes responded in unison.

Nicholas just sailed away. Nose in the air, in their opinion. Not noticing Danny's interested stare as he followed him out like an over-eager puppy. Already chattering Angel's ear off about something or other.

As far as the others were concerned, that was that.

* * *

After a while, mostly after he stormed Sanford on horseback and got the truth out, it became clear that Nicholas channeled his Alpha traits into his police work. In a sense, he had no other choice. He kept himself on such a short leash that it took them until the blow up of the station to realize order and control was how the Alpha centered himself.

What they'd taken for city airs and an extra-large stick wedged up his arse was less that and more the man's answer to his own biology.

Still, he'd loosened up when they'd welcomed him. Showing him, mostly through rubbish bins to the head and constantly taking the piss, that he'd been accepted into their office pack. A near wonder considering the Andes were Alphas themselves and generally disposed to be disagreeable to other Alphas in their territory.

Sargent Popwell had been a good enough example of that.

He'd been a good bloke, to be sure.

But the Andes had hated him more than Sargent Angel from first glance alone.

Which, frankly, was saying something.

But even after the station and Frank, Danny and the rebuilding that came after, that same strictness and sense of duty was still there. Boldly obvious to anyone with eyes.

Which was why _no one_ was surprised when the stuffy git barged into the underground lab tit first and got a fucking _face-full_ of the rot they were cooking up in there.

* * *

Angel was still spitting up violent pink powder in the chemical rinse shower when Tony and the Turner twins finally figured out which drug he'd been exposed to.

"Al-alright. We've got bad news, more bad news and ah- worse news," Tony stuttered, bottom lip like a drooping flag as he bobbed between the computer and the chatter coming from the radio.

"Bad news first," Wainwright snarked, tossing his broken aviators into the bin as sweat started rolling down from his hairline. Vibrating with a tension that was completely opposite his usual lazy intensity.

Cartwright didn't say anything. Instead, he scented the air. Frowning like he'd caught a whiff of something that didn't sit right.

"Al-alright. So, the bad news is the drug they managed to cook up is rather- _ah-_ potent. It's meant to neutralize an Alpha or Omega's suppressants and- _ahem_ , send them into a near immediate rut or heat."

"Horseshit," Wainwright snapped. "You can't force a rut that fast. Or a bleedin' heat. The body can't handle it."

Bob echoed that. Making them all nod as Saxon whined and inched his way deeper under the man's desk. Digging his nose into the carpet with a huff.

"I'm afraid it's true," Tony returned. Glasses in danger of slipping off his nose as he scrolled through his phone. "In fact, the boys outside reckon things need to run their course. No idea how long it will last. But we are to radio any changes. They said to-"

"What's the _other_ bad news?" One of the Turner twins interrupted, frowning. Doing little to shake Cartwright out of it as he scented the air again. Swaying close to Wainwright - nearly bumping into him. Eyes surprisingly heavy lidded as he wavered there, just behind Wainwright's shoulder, shaking his head like he was trying to clear it.

"Sargent Angel needs to stay in isolation. Here, in fact," Tony continued, clearly uncomfortable. Neck coloring as if the perceived embarrassment was catching.

Doris' outrage was quick to the front.

"We can't just leave him in there!"

Saxon barked.

Bob blinked.

Tony's mouth turned down.

"Bah, get some dirty magazines, toss 'em in, and let him do his business. Problem solved," Detective Wainwright snorted. Leaning back to nudge Detective Cartwright as an honest snicker left the two of them.

Then-

"Wait, what's the worst news?"

Tony impressively avoided tripping on his tongue when he squared his shoulders and stuttered out the last bit like it was dawn on hanging day and he was about to swing.

"Well- only that we- ah, we've _all_ been exposed."

Naturally, that was when everything dissolved into complete and utter pandemonium.

* * *

"Hold on!" Doris shouted after a good three minutes of everyone bleating. Swiveling around in her chair as the Turner twins took turns trying to get the CDC blokes to let them open a window. '"Where's Danny?"

There was a beat, then-

"Oh. _Fuck_."

The jingle of a coin hitting the swear box was surprisingly calming, all things considered.

"Thank you, Andy."


	2. Chapter 2

"Nicholas? You alright?"

He gritted his teeth. Fingers curling into the gaps between the tiles. The lancing pain was brutal on his bad hand - which was still a bit stiff. But he welcomed the distraction. It took his mind off the thoughts rebounding inside his skull. The dark tones that were stretching outout _out_. Reminding him how much he pushed back every day. Reminding him how essential his suppressants were. Reminding him that Danny was-

- _his_.

"Fine," he responded. Clipped and absolutely anything but as he trembled into the cooling spray. It hadn't been hot in the first place, but now his body was taking care of that for him. Feeling like a boiler was burning under his skin. Too far gone to be bothered by the fact he was naked and Danny was _right_ _there_. Watching. Looking.

There was a shuffling squeak of familiar soles, then-

"I heard what they said. About the suppressants...m'things."

He squeezed his eyes shut.

"Stay back, Danny."

Words hurt more than anything. And those ones cost him dearly. Wanting nothing more than to whirl around and grab him up. Claim him. To use the drug and the way Danny was smelling - so receptive and sweet - as an excuse.

But he couldn't.

He could.

_But he couldn't._

Somehow that made sense.

He wavered, almost slipping in the wet as he inhaled without thinking. Taking in as much of Danny's scent as he could before his knees threatened to buckle. Just like they had the moment he'd found him in the rubble of the old station and thought he'd lost him.

"I ain't leaving you."

His eyes snapped open, laser focused on the new grout in front of him. The chemical shower hadn't been used until now. Just like the evidence locker and the riot gear. Everything was new. _Better_. Familiar only in the best ways, the way's he'd come to understand Sanford could be without Frank and the NWA. And that was a good thing, a reminder that-

He was a mess. He'd seen snatches of himself in the mirror before it fogged up. His skin felt two sizes too small. Every inch of him flushed and painfully red. Cock twitching against his thigh as Danny's scent grew richer in the close space. Buttery and homey. The same scent that'd come to permeate his cottage, his couch, even his clothes. All of it thick with the best of him. It had started before all that, of course. But after the hospital he hadn't done anything to stop it. Maybe he should have, but he hadn't. Finding himself less restless these days, less harsh and on-edge. Knowing deep down exactly why whenever Danny toddled through his door, grinning at him.

 _Home_.

Somewhere along the line that was what Danny had become for him.

The one thing he cared about more than the job.

_Danny._

_His._

He bared his teeth into the spray, a low growl rumbling in his throat.

"You don't want me to go. Not really," Danny murmured, surprisingly on the nose despite also having gone through decontamination with the rest of them. Like he might have had this conversation in his head once or twice. Or he was quoting from a movie. "I know it."

He wasn't sure which option was better. Or worse.

"You need to leave," he said again, hyper aware of the sharp of his teeth as they stung against his lower lip. Fighting the burn of want as it throbbed through him like a second heartbeat.

 _Christ_ , _he_ _needed_ _to-_

"I won't," Danny said stubbornly. Smelling enough like wet cotton that he realized Danny must have inched close enough to get hit by the spray. He hadn't even heard him move.

"Danny-" he started, weak with it. Pathetically unable – _unwilling_ \- to stop the enviable as the sound of raised voices drifted through the closed door.

"I want to stay," Danny murmured softly. Meaning it in every amazing, terrible way as he gripped the soap dispenser to keep him upright. Knees threatening to fold.

He wanted him to stay.

He wanted to _make_ Danny stay, forever.

He wanted-

"Hold on, where's Danny?"

Doris' voice carried down the hall. Her Omega scent reassuring and under no apparent distress despite the rank of two Alpha scents that were only growing stronger by the second.

_The Andes._

He shook himself, nose twitching. Knowing their presence was going to be a problem if they tried to come after him – after Danny. He didn't trust himself not to have a go at them. Not when he was like this. He knew that the Andes saw Danny as nothing more than a little brother, at best, but with the compound-

Still, that by itself invited confusion.

Why hadn't the Andes shoved their way in by now?

Why hadn't they made a challenge?

Why wasn't Doris' scent distressed?

Why hadn't the Andes turned on each other?

If they'd all been exposed, the Andes should have been in similar shape. Danny and Doris were the only Omegas in the station. That had to mean something. Something important. But he lost the line of questioning just as quickly as it occurred. Buried under a wave of possessive want that rattled his teeth. Unable to help himself from snarling at the door, warning the other Alphas to stay away.

He breathed in deliberately this time. Taking Danny's scent deeper, muting the rank of the rival Alphas. Hiding his nose in the crook of his arm as the scents grew complex in the humidity. If he'd been in his right mind, he would have known the trap for what it was. Muting the other scents only made Danny's all the stronger. Allowing him to focus on his mate's scent and nothing else.

He blinked into the water, mouth watering. Dazed by the richness of it.

Oh.

 _Bollocks_.

He'd never smelled Danny like this. The sweetness was familiar, comforting. But the weight of it- the condensed rawness behind the invitation shredded his self-control in real time. Powerless to move one way or the other.

"I ain't leaving," Danny said again, shuffling closer behind him. Able to feel the difference as the air hushed across his sensitive skin. Every inch of him focused on Danny. On how good he smelled. On how much he needed him. How close he was. _Everything_. "-sides, we're past that… don't you 'fink?"

He looked up, fingers uncurling from their death-grip around the soap cupboard.

"There isn't anywhere I'd rather be. Even if the drug hadn't- _well_ -"

Danny trailed off with a shrug. Only he could smell the truth of it. With just an inhale he knew without question that Danny meant it. That he wanted this. Wanted him. That his scent was receptive, open, clean and everything he didn't deserve.

Because the mere mention of the compound should have shaken him out of it. It should have been a reminder that this wasn't the time to fall into something they couldn't take back. There were more reasons, including excessive paperwork, but he couldn't hold onto them for long. Not with the way Danny was looking at him. Eyes hooded and painfully hopeful.

The truth was, they would have gotten here eventually. They'd been working their way up to exactly this ever since he'd arrived in Sanford. He just hadn't known how to close the gap. To recognize that what he wanted versus what they already had wasn't as big of an ask as he thought it would be. Desperate not to cock things up when he'd never been more content in his bloody life and-

He broke messily, whining through the grit of his teeth as the moment broke along with him. Knowing that the stumbling ease in the way Danny was reaching for him meant he'd moved first. Like he'd been waiting for it – wanting it.

 _Christ_.

"Nicholas…"

His name left Danny's lips like supplicant thing. Heartfelt and gorgeously broken in the way only truly good things are. The water threatened to send him sprawling as he turned jerkily, facing him for the first time. Breathing hard and reaching- reaching- _reaching_ \- until Danny was there. Real and wet and his as he pulled him in fiercely.

"Nicholas…"

He looked up from the crux of Danny's neck, mostly in the hopes he'd say it again as they swayed there, laughing into the first desperate kiss. Almost missing Danny's lips entirely as they surged together unevenly. Imperfect, but so good he couldn't help the snort of laughter as his cheek grazed Danny's worried pout. Reminding him he should probably be saying something. Words.

The sound he made as he straightened, trying to get a grip on himself, made Danny shiver. Filling the air with a fresh haze of his soft, Omega scent. Confusing his nervous system so much he nearly collapsed, prick leaking.

"Danny, I-" he broke off, snarling when Danny shifted against him deliciously. Uniform pants grazing the sensitive head of his cock. "I need to- no…I want to tell you, before- before we-"

Danny stopped him with a chaste, curious kiss. Temporarily breaking through the haze of want and need as he hissed at the warmth – surprised and pleased. Looking back at him with every emotion he didn't know how to put into words.

Because just like always, Danny already knew.

"I knew the moment you decided to stay in Sandford. You could have gone back to London, but you didn't. I've been trying to tell you since then. Guess it's not like a movie after all…thought there'd be the right time or somefink."

He gargled a relieved, loving sound into the soft of Danny's neck. Eyes prickling with tears that were quickly lost in the pounding spray. Excuse enough to surge forward and tug at the man's clothes as Danny tried to fit in an awkward kiss anyway. Slowly giving in to the fire slanting through him as Danny's hand curled around his prick, trying to sooth the ache. Reminding him it was okay to be a little out of control as they slid down the wall. Reconnecting with their darker parts like this had been the plan all along.

Maybe everything was going to work out after all, he thought to himself as Danny folded somehow - whining out an encouraging sound. Letting him press him against the unforgiving tiles. Sinking his teeth in Danny's neck as his cock pressed against the wet seam of his arse.

In fact, he knew it would. Because even then, in that moment, Danny's hand found his.

Everything would be alright.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *This chapter is told in Andy Wainwright's perspective.

They made it as far as the swear box - proceeds still going to the church roof, if anyone cared to know - before everyone realized two important things. First, if they'd all been exposed, that meant the Andies needed to be contained. And second, by the smell of it, Danny and Nicholas had already jumped full in.

Which left them in an awkward position as far as available - _and willing!_ \- partners were concerned. Not to mention the statistical nightmare of finding a door that would lock from the outside only before everything got completely out of control.

* * *

He took charge before the others could cock it up. Grabbing Andy by the collar as he shouldered through the door toward the stairs, stumbling _upupup_ towards their office. Knowing Cartwright was right behind him. Knowing he had to get them away - away from Doris and Danny - away from...just away.

He'd always led. Ever since they were kids. Ever since Cartwright's ma and da had moved into the farm beside theirs. It hadn't mattered when Andy had presented Alpha a couple years after him. It hadn't changed anything. Andy still followed him. He was still his best mate. Still the first and the last person he saw every bloody day. Just as he liked it.

It didn't matter that the man's scent was all over him. Neither of them bothered to use the soaps and pills that deadened your scenes, they didn't need 'em. Commenting more than once that they'd never understood why other Alphas needed that rot. Andy's scent didn't bother him anymore than his seemed to bother Andy. Sure, it made dating weird. Meeting a bird smelling thick with him. But most people knew enough about them to twitch their nose and let it go. It was calming, really. Something he'd come to depend on, no matter how shite things got.

"A-Andy?"

He gritted his teeth. Sweating. Hating how similar it sounded to the way Andy called his name after the explosion. Delicate. Hesitant. Unsure. They'd been sitting right next to each other until suddenly they _weren't_. The sea mine had gone off and he'd been flung out the window as it shattered. He'd broken his arm and his new aviators and was still out of it when Andy crashed through the pile he was under and dragged him out. But he remembered snapping awake with ashes on his tongue when Andy called for him.

They were too wrapped up in each other not to, he supposed.

He hadn't been able to yell back, mouth too full of grit and broken things. But his voice had brought him back, giving him strength to blink awake. Now he wondered if he should have thought more about what that meant.

"Andy, you smell like… like-"

He inhaled roughly. Hands curling around Andy's shoulder as he pulled him through the door. Ignoring the irritated grunt at the manhandling as Andy hit the desk with his hip. Able to _taste_ the Alpha's scent on his tongue as he locked the door. Leaning into it with a vicious swear.

It locked from the inside.

Fuck.

_Fuck._

It wouldn't take more than a fumble to charge down the stairs again if they lost control.

_When they lost control._

Because with the way it was spreading – stronger and faster than any rut he'd ever experienced - he might as well be falling apart one piece at a time. Panic fattening in his throat as Doris called up the stairs to ask if they were alright. The edges of her voice close to trembling.

_Jesus Christ._

"Get something to bar the fucking door, you gits!" he yelled through the crack. "Now! Tony! Get up here you flaming idiot!"

He reeled back, shrugging out of his jacket as the echoes taunted. Sweat trickling past his hairline as he sucked air between his teeth. Highlighting the silence as Andy said nothing-nothing-nothing. Nothing smart. Nothing stupid. Not even something to back him up. Hyper aware that Andy was breathing hard behind him and nothing else.

The hair on the back of his neck prickled, hackles twitching.

Footsteps echoed exaggeratedly from downstairs. But the sound was warped. He shook his head, trying to clear it. But that just made him dizzy. Feeling like a fever was burning under his skin as he tried to remember what Tony had said about the drug. His fingers trembled slightly as they went for his coat pocket, desperate for a fag before he remembered the CDC boys had taken everything, including his jacket. Leaving them with their spare set of clothes from their lockers and nothing else.

He shivered, bracing his hands on either side of the door instead. Vaguely wondering if it was to keep Andy in or to keep him from leaving. Because honestly, those were two very different things. There was a distinction or somemat. Something he felt but didn't want to let go of. Not yet.

Because the thing was, he didn't want to go downstairs.

He didn't want to go anywhere.

And apparently, neither did Andy.

And that meant something.

He breathed in unevenly. Desperate for Andy's scent to calm him. Taking comfort in the familiar as he heard Andy doing the same. And it did, it was there and stronger than ever. But there was something else. Something that connected with the reason why they hadn't lost it and started posturing the moment the drug started affecting them. Why Doris' gentle Omega scent didn't have them on their knees and scrabbling for the door.

He wondered if Andy felt it. _If_ _he_ _knew_. He must have, because soon he started talking. Tripping over the words like each one was a god damned jungle trap. Something with sharp sticks and maybe a fucking tiger at the bottom.

"You smell so... I- can't- I could smell you down there...that whole time. It didn't make sense because it was you, but different. I thought it was Danny or Doris but it's you. Fuck, mate- it's you..."

He felt the vibrations as Tony and the Turner twins dragged a filing cabinet across the floor. Piling shit in front of the door as his fingers tried their best to curl underneath the hinges. Heart pounding in his ears as Andy let go of a whimper behind him.

"Andy?"

He didn't turn around.

He couldn't.

Because this was one of those moments your body and brain was designed to avoid for as long as possible. It was an instinct. Because after this, nothing was going to be the same. And the chance that things could end up being broken beyond repair was a risk he couldn't handle. He couldn't lose him, not even if-

"Yeah?" he answered anyway, with a lisp that sounded more like grating teeth. Finding it harder and harder not to whirl around and snatch him up. To slam him against the wall and see it dent. To bruise him up in the best and worst of ways as his hands tugged at clothes and skin and every part of Andy that'd been _his_ since the moment he'd laid eyes on him, years ago.

'I- I don't want Doris...or Danny."

His heart fucking stuttered.

"...or anyone else."

The fallout might as well have been nuclear.

Because that was the thing.

Alphas didn't pair up with other Alphas.

Not really.

Not often.

According to everyone he knew, it just wasn't done.

But he _wanted_.

_Fuck how he wanted._

He looked up from the door, cock jumping against his zipper with a painful throb. The truth – the terrible, terrifying, exhilarating truth - was that it wasn't the first time. He didn't need a drug when it came to Andy. Because he still remembered the day he'd presented. Andy had climbed through his window when he hadn't made it to school. Stuck in his room with a fever, a hard-on and a restlessness that had him climbing the walls. But all that had faded when he'd caught Andy's scent for the first time. Every muscle tense and on point as he pinned Andy to the sill. Growling and showing his teeth as he sank his fingers into the hollow of Andy's collarbone. Refusing to let up as the boy cursed and flailed. Only settling when he buried his nose in Andy's hair and inhaled. There had been a pause before Andy's arms had wrapped around him in an awkward, violent hug. Muttering something concerned and squashed into his neck as their scents mingled and slowly all that restless energy started to settle.

It shouldn't have.

It _should_ have settled when his older sister came home.

Her Omega scent soothing and sweet, everything an Alpha was designed to respond to.

But that was the big, fat secret of it all.

It had been Andy _. It had always been Andy._

They'd never talked about it. Not the way he'd been naked and hard and had blurted pre-cum into the crease of Andy's shorts. Not the way Andy had let him. How his scent had yielded so easily he'd thought for sure Andy would be an Omega when he came of age. _His_. But he hadn't. So he'd buried it. They both had. Until now.

"Me neither," he admitted hoarsely to the door. "There aint nobody else."

Everyone had always said they were closer than brothers and thicker than mates. Which left the obvious question he'd spent his entire adult life unknowingly avoiding. One that was probably related to the reason why they barely dated and the entire bleeding town took it as a given that they were rarely seen apart.

It seemed like everyone had known before them, maybe.

When he finally gathered the stones to turn around, he found Andy staring back. A mess of freckled-flushed skin and hands that'd turned into fists - like he was having to hold himself back from jumping him. And fuck if that didn't get him going.

He was animally-aware of the tug and pull of the muscles in his face when he fixed him with a smile that was mostly teeth. Smirking when Andy's lip pulled back in response, porcelain-white mirrored back at him. But rather than a threat, it came out as an invitation.

He was so painfully hard he could have fucking _died_.

"Andy..."

He took the first step. Because that was how it'd always been. Then the second. Because there was nothing he wanted more than to kill the space. The third step Andy took, reaching out to grip his forearms as they slotted together like they were never meant to be apart.

Oh.

_Oh fuck._

He dragged his teeth down Andy's neck, open-mouthed and messy. Growling into the stubble on his chin before Andy kissed him back, just as hungry. Biting at each other's lips and scraping teeth as his senses jumbled together like the high of a rut. Only this was a hundred times better. Better than anything. Better than-

"Can we?" Andy rasped breathlessly, making him bugling out an awkward laugh as he fumbled with the button on Andy's trousers. Swearing out a blue streak when he got fed up and ripped it off. Desperate to get his hands on him.

They both grunted when he wrapped his hand around Andy's prick. Too needy and far gone to freak out about any of it. That it was another bloke he was jacking off. That it was another _Alpha_. And instead just breathed through it.

 _Mine_.

Christ, why hadn't they done this sooner?

It was fucking obvious.

He figured part of him had known since that day in his bedroom.

When it had been Andy's scent and no one else's that'd been able to calm him.

"Andy… _Andy_ …can- can we? How? Ah- _shite_."

Andy's hips bucked into his fist. Encouraging him to move, to use what he liked as a guide and hope for the best. And Andy didn't disappoint, making a sound like he was dying before grabbing at him – grazing his cock through his clothes. He growled, pressing into the friction until Andy's hands were at his belt and his trousers were pooling, caught in the crease behind his knees.

"We can," he rasped, hiccuping as Andy's thumb grazed the middling swell of his knot, already trying to tie. So far gone already that he was liable to go off early. Too damn needy not to try and make it last as he gasped into the corner of Andy's mouth. "I want to."

Maybe it had never been wrong. It didn't feel wrong. _It felt right._

The fat of Andy's knot was heavy and complimentary in his palm as he took a chance and firmed his fist around it. Living off the flash of Andy's teeth before they scraped down his neck. Sharp against the thinnest skin as they cussed into the same heavy air.

Fuck.

 _Fuck_.

He had no idea what he was doing and neither did Andy. But as he pushed Andy across the nearest desk. Biting kisses down ruddy skin as Andy surged up, brushing bellies and leaking pricks in a fucking amazing glide, he was starting to realize that was okay.

He didn't know how it would work, now or later, but for Andy he was gagging to try.

He had a feeling not much would change anyway, save maybe they start sharing the same cottage.

And that was just fine wit' him as far as making things official goes.


	4. Chapter 4

Something echoed - a knock, maybe. Spreading a lazy ripple of sound that pulled him from sleep. He yawned, shaking his head. Working his way through an achy, satisfied stretch as Danny buzzed a soft snore into the hollow of his rib-cage.

_What was that?_

_And more importantly, why were they on the floor?_

He woke with a slow, fat-lip slur of a sound. Smiling instinctively and without censor when Danny grumbled beside him. Sprawled together in an off-center nest of shucked clothes and damp tiles.

Ah. Right.

He blinked, still only half-awake as he tried to figure out what had woken him. It was a half-hearted effort before he was distracted again. Because Danny was soft and tucked into his side. One arm slung heavy across his chest like he was making sure he wouldn't go anywhere without him.

He smiled, feeling the dry catch of split skin.

Little chance of that.

The rest came about belatedly. Taking a moment to realize that despite being exhausted, sore and dehydrated, his head was clear. The drug was out of his system. The worst was over.

The knock, because it had been a knock, came again. Quickly followed by Doris poking her head in. Her Omega scent calming and familiar, if not a bit strong. Like she was coming into the confrontation trying too hard, just in case.

He didn't blame her.

A couple hours ago he wasn't sure what his reaction would have been.

Even to another Omega.

If it hadn't been Danny, well- he didn't know what he would have done.

Not in the state he'd been in.

"You two decent?" she chirped, with a tone that inferred she expected anything but. Eying them openly when she peeked around the door jamb. Cheeky grin widening as he looked from her, then down at himself. Flushed, scratched up and more or less delightfully ruined.

He sighed.

Even his prick was too tired to be upset about it.

"You guys alright?" Doris asked.

He nodded. Forcing himself to focus on due process even though every inch of him wanted to burrow deeper into Danny's chest and let the world wait for a while.

"You?" he questioned. Knowing she was, but letting the platitude out anyway. There'd been a memo on it when he'd been in London. About interpersonal communication and staffing moral. A reminder for the Alphas to check in verbally with their coworkers and not just rely on scent.

"O'course," Doris hummed, scent leeching relief and a strange blurt of personal satisfaction he couldn't see or scent a reason for. "It didn't effect the rest of us much. Reckon it was meant for Alphas. Not Omegas or Betas."

Just Alphas?

_Oh, hell._

"What about the Andies?"

Doris' eyebrows waggled, grin going impossibly wider.

"Oh, they sorted each other out," she said with a laugh, winking saucily. "Cartwright invited me to join 'im when I checked in, but I told 'im off. Threes a crowd with them lot. 'Sides, Wainwright would have probably run me out if I tried. A bit possessive, that one."

He nodded in agreement, one eye on Danny as the man yawned and stretched. Scratching his chest without opening his eyes. The scar on his belly still ropy, pink and raised. Standing out like a reminder that seemed all the more important, considering current events.

_Why had they waited this long?_

Something itched, bringing him grudgingly back to the Andies. He wasn't surprised that Wainwright would be the more aggressive of the two. His personality was-

"What? The two of them?" he broke through, blinking hugely. Surprised, but then _really not_ at the same time. Mentally going over every interaction before settling on a confused, but rather solid belief that it had been a long time coming.

"About time," Danny muttered, digging his face into the curl of his arm pit. Smile obvious and wide, like the good feeling was catching.

"That's what I said," Doris teased, opening the door wider. Letting in the cold air and- _ugh_. His nose twitched. Taking in far more of the Andies scents than he'd ever wanted to as the rest of the station wafted determinedly in. "They're alright. Probably a bit annoyed when they find out their folks have had a running bet on when they'd figure their shite out. The blooming idiots."

Danny snorted a laugh.

He cleared his throat, resisting the urge to bury his nose in Danny's neck again.

"Do we know anything more about the drug, then?" he asked, more for the distraction than anything.

Doris surprised him by sobering slightly, chewing at her lip before replying.

"Not much, but- well- the blokes from the CDC thinks it wasn't as bad as we thought. The drug is meant to lower your inhibitions and send the Alpha into a chemical rut. But only wild enough for them to seek out the partner they really care about. It's why the Andies never tried to go after me 'n Danny. Even though we were Omegas. We weren't who they were after..."

She trailed off and he gaped into the silence. Making sense of it.

It was why he hadn't wanted Doris.

Because Danny was the only one he wanted.  
 _  
The only one who fit._

He exhaled, feeling that final piece slot effortlessly into place. The last of the doubt, second guessing and fear falling away. Exposing only the good as Danny's fingers laced with his and squeezed.

Everything was going to be alright.

"I'll leave you to it, huh?" Doris offered, with an expression that told him he wasn't doing anything to hide the feelings making it to his face. "Come out when you're ready, hmm? The CDC blokes want to check in before tea time."

Danny waited until Doris left before turning to him.

"We're okay, ain't we?" he asked earnestly, somehow managing to be boyish with his cow-licked hair and warm eyes. Watching him carefully, but with more confidence than he would have had as the moment started to stretch.

"Better than okay," he assured, pressing a kiss into Danny's hair that he figured answered the rest. Savoring the warm contentment that spread despite the chill of the tiles under their nest of discarded clothes.

Somewhere outside the door, the sound of voices – raucous but familiar - rose and fell. Reminding him that there was more than a little bit left to do before they could pack up for the day. Not to mention the procedures the CDC was going to put them through.

But instead of getting to his feet or making noise about a shower, he tried to roll Danny closer to him. Demanding more – more skin, more warmth, more _Danny_. When gravity held them steady – largely thanks to Danny – he gave in and clambered half on top of him. Dragging his cheek down his chest until Danny laughed and settled his palm around the back of his neck. Warm, bright and his as the echoes fed more then just their souls, but the future as well.

It wouldn't be long until duty called, but for now, he figured they'd earned a bit of a lie in.

**Author's Note:**

> Reference:
> 
> \- Votive: a vow, an offer given, a dedication.


End file.
